Philippe Léotard, actor, singer, poet and writer, who has died aged 60, was relatively unknown outside his native France, where he was a well-loved but disconcerting figure, seen as either having frittered away his talents on drugs and alcohol, or as a poète maudit whose addictions fed his abilities.

Born in Nice into a strict Catholic family, his conservative father became mayor of Fréjus, and his authoritarian mother never gave him free rein. "One must kill one's parents one day or another in one manner or another. If I were a girl, I would have become a prostitute," he wrote.

Léotard immersed himself in literature and taught the classics until, in 1962, he met the director Ariane Mnouchkine, with whom he founded the celebrated Thé- tre du Soleil. He played an important role in the early days of the company, first adapting plays and then as an actor. But after a couple of years he clashed with Mnouchkine and left the theatre for some time, throwing himself into films.

It was François Truffaut who gave him his first break, with small roles in Bed And Board (Domicile Conjugale, 1970) and A Gorgeous Bird Like Me (Une Belle Fille Comme Moi, 1972). He also worked for many other leading French directors, as well as playing a gangster in John Frankenheimer's The French Connection II (1975). In 1982, he won a César (the French Oscar) for his role in Bob Swain's tough police thriller, La Balance. It co-starred his long-time lover, Nathalie Baye, with whom he made a number of films.

Léotard returned to the stage in 1983 in Patrice Chéreau's acclaimed production of The Struggle Of A Black And Dogs by Bernard-Marie Koltès, in which he played an alienated mechanic. A few years later, he began another successful career when he used to effect his rather rasping, emotional voice as a singer of songs, midway between chanson française and the spoken word.

In 1992, he published a book of his poems, Not A Day Without A Line (Pas un jour sans une ligne), claiming that he wanted to be the "last decadent poet". Two years later, he received an 18-month suspended sentence for possession of cocaine. After that he overdosed several times, and died while suffering his third alcoholic coma.

When asked once, "How would you like to die?" he replied, "Drunk". He chronicled his battle against alcohol in his book, Portrait Of An Artist With A Red Nose, in which he mused: "What's the point of getting cured? You can't get cured of life."

Philippe Léotard, actor and singer, born August 28 1940; died August 25, 2001.